• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow |OT| The MercurySteam has Vanquished the Horrible Night

M

MadOdorMachine

No additional functions
brandonh83 said:
It's my favorite action game battle system of the gen by far. I find it incredibly challenging on harder difficulties but I feel like I actually stand a chance whereas games like DMC and Bayonetta require you study them like a religion.

Not a fan of that. I love both of those games dearly but I don't even dare attempt them on their harder difficulties. I feel like I can actually "master" this game though without learning game controller Ninjitsu.
Click to expand...
They could still learn a few things from other games though. They're already copying off of NG pretty heavily, but I'd like to be able to cancel actions and go right into a block. All in all, I wish the controls were more responsive. I think that's inherent to western action games though. It seems like the Japanese games are the only ones with the snappiness I like. I'd also like them to change the way you absorb orbs to regain magic. I think it would work better if they just gave you one magic meter to divide between light and dark and let it suck in the orbs automatically. If they're going to copy NG, they may as well go all the way. Obviously the framerate needs to be fixed and I'd also like to see an option to turn off the shaky cam. Still, they have a good start, but it could use a lot of tweaking. Hopefully we'll see a sequel.
 
P

Papercuts

fired zero bullets in the orphanage.
brandonh83 said:
so has anyone did the
crow witch
trial yet? Jesus...
Click to expand...

I haven't tried it, but noticed as I fought her that
you can throw the first AND last egg back at her. If you aren't already doing that, it should be enough to reduce the spawns.
 
T

Teknoman

Member
Aerial attacks arent usless. And I havent run into any enemies that dont react to attacks...aside from bosses/mid bosses at times. Then again, i'm just at Chapter 3.
 
Y

Y2Kev

TLG Fan Caretaker Est. 2009
Teknoman said:
Aerial attacks arent usless. And I havent run into any enemies that dont react to attacks...aside from bosses/mid bosses at times. Then again, i'm just at Chapter 3.
Click to expand...
Eh, it's like GoW. Area attacks slice through enemies. If you could stun enemies, you'd never stop mashing, so it kind of works.
 
V

vermadas

Member
W T F

Chapter 3-2 boss...

Last part of second phase. I have half my health left and no magic left. Do I have to start this shit over? Because how the FUCK am I supposed to have enough time to charge up a gauntlet hit on these stones with this bastard chasing me nearly non-fucking-stop? Obviously the first three are easy to destroy. But then it randomly decides you'll need a full charge to do it. Is there any way to stun him? The only time I get an opening long enough is when he decides to do a short howl and I'm also in proximity to a stone. He does this so rarely though. I had two stones left once and I was running from him for about two minutes straight waiting for him to pause. DAMMIT this pisses me off. Please tell me I'm missing some stupid trick?
 
N

NeoUltima

Member
vermadas said:
W T F

Chapter 3-2 boss...

Last part of second phase. I have half my health left and no magic left. Do I have to start this shit over? Because how the FUCK am I supposed to have enough time to charge up a gauntlet hit on these stones with this bastard chasing me nearly non-fucking-stop? Obviously the first three are easy to destroy. But then it randomly decides you'll need a full charge to do it. Is there any way to stun him? The only time I get an opening long enough is when he decides to do a short howl and I'm also in proximity to a stone. He does this so rarely though. I had two stones left once and I was running from him for about two minutes straight waiting for him to pause. DAMMIT this pisses me off. Please tell me I'm missing some stupid trick?
Click to expand...
You don't have to use the gauntlet. Just attack the rocks.
 
A

Aeana

Member
I recognized Claudia's voice almost immediately. It's Emma Furguson, the lady who did Jessica in the English version of DQ8. :eek: Cool to hear her again.
 
P

Phenomic

Member
luka said:
Why does everyone assume you need to gauntlet punch the rocks?


Lots of hours. 15-20 roughly.
Click to expand...

Easy enough to understand because you punch a lot of the stones in the game with the gauntlet. Even though these look more like monuments and sculptures to me then just plain rocks. Never the less that's pretty much why.
 
L

luka

Loves Robotech S1
Phenomic said:
Easy enough to understand because you punch a lot of the stones in the game with the gauntlet. Even though these look more like monuments and sculptures to me then just plain rocks. Never the less that's pretty much why.
Click to expand...

Do you really? Stones? I just finished the game yesterday and I actually can't recall any instance of boulder punching. You punch statues to move them, yes, but never to destroy them, and there is always a visual indication that they're meant to move.

People overthink the weirdest stuff.
 
P

Phenomic

Member
luka said:
Do you really? Stones? I just finished the game yesterday and I actually can't recall any instance of boulder punching. You punch statues to move them, yes, but never to destroy them, and there is always a visual indication that they're meant to move.

People overthink the weirdest stuff.
Click to expand...

Everything you state is true and yeah I think there is definitely clear enough distinction between the actual two. Obviously the glowing etc, but the statues while they are not giant rocks.... they are made out of rock, marble or something similar that's hard. :lol I never actually punched those boulders I mean I assume the Gauntlet actually does damage to them though? Or does it not even work at all?
 
Z

Zeal

Banned
Y2Kev said:
Spoilers:

http://i51.tinypic.com/8xlfmt.jpg

simply incredible
Click to expand...

Some of the areas in this game look like they've taken 5 years to develop, namely
Pan's forest, the Vampire Castle and especially the Necromancer's Abyss.
. The sheer vastness and scale is insane. I don't know how MS pulled this off on any console, to be honest.

The desire for a sequel is almost instinctual at this point. If some of David Cox's tweets are any indication, we will have one eventually.
 
S

ScrabbleBanshee

Member
I'm losing track of what chapter is what ... but,
the chapter that includes the vampire castle was great stuff. The nice little touches of pulling open the curtains to let light in the room, the light actually burning the vampires that dare step into it... the evil butcher was a great piece of comic relief in the middle of an otherwise game that aims to at least attempt to take itself seriously. The puzzle at the end with the wall of runes, I couldn't find any body with the puzzle hint on it anywhere... so I just figured it out by trial and error. I thought solving the runes would open a way to the "upper level" one note mentioned. But, of course, I went through the door and level ended so I missed a gem that must have been up there. Fuckers.
 
G

gamelova

Member
I am at the fire cemetery at Chapter 10 where there are a bunch if skeletons attacking me and there are two bongs tht need to be punched. I punch both of them but nothing is happening. I have been stuck here for 20 minutes.
 
J

JohngPR

Member
Man, this OT blew up! I'm way behind in pages, but I might skip them so I don't come across any gameplay spoiiers. :p

I just beat Chapter 2 and holy shit at the end of the chapter...did not see that coming. Really enjoying the game still. The combat system is opening up a little bit more than I thought it would, which is a good thing.
 
P

Papercuts

fired zero bullets in the orphanage.
How is everyone using Dark Crystals? I constantly forget to use them, always annoys me when I find another one but can't pick it up. :lol

Are they good on bosses? I've just been blowing them on random fights now.
 
Z

ZeroRay

Member
Papercuts said:
How is everyone using Dark Crystals? I constantly forget to use them, always annoys me when I find another one but can't pick it up. :lol

Are they good on bosses? I've just been blowing them on random fights now.
Click to expand...

They saved my ass on two of the boss fights. Especially
Cornell
.
 
R

rollingstart

Banned
Finished it earlier and thought the game was ok. If they need to fix two things for another attempt, it would be the pacing and overall polish. Presentation was really king in the game, followed by puzzles, then combat, *large empty area*, then platforming. At this point, I want them to focus a lot less on platforming or make it much better; there was simply too much of it for how weak the stiff mechanics were. Find better ways of showing off the nice environments!

And did the limited edition come with any 'making of' content? I want to know more about the history of how this game was made
 
S

Solune

Member
Papercuts said:
How is everyone using Dark Crystals? I constantly forget to use them, always annoys me when I find another one but can't pick it up. :lol

Are they good on bosses? I've just been blowing them on random fights now.
Click to expand...

They are required if you want to do the Titan trials. And yes they do massive damage to bosses.
 
Tokubetsu

Tokubetsu

Member
Solune said:
They are required if you want to do the Titan trials. And yes they do massive damage to bosses.
Click to expand...

I tried one earlier but still couldn't get up to the last rune in the 1:30 time :lol I was close though. Time to go farm another crystal :lol
 
M

MadOdorMachine

No additional functions
Okay, I can use some help now if possible. I'm stuck at the end of chapter 5. I'm at
a spike strip in the sewers
that I can't get past. How do you get thru this?
 
L

LaneDS

Member
MadOdorMachine said:
Okay, I can use some help now if possible. I'm stuck at the end of chapter 5. I'm at
a spike strip in the sewers
that I can't get past. How do you get thru this?
Click to expand...

Turn on shadow magic, hold L2 at the spikes, charge forward twice to get to the other side. The gate will close. With shadow magic still on, throw one dagger at the switch across the way, gate opens, victory.
 
L

luka

Loves Robotech S1
ScrabbleBanshee said:
I'm losing track of what chapter is what ... but,
the chapter that includes the vampire castle was great stuff. The nice little touches of pulling open the curtains to let light in the room, the light actually burning the vampires that dare step into it... the evil butcher was a great piece of comic relief in the middle of an otherwise game that aims to at least attempt to take itself seriously. The puzzle at the end with the wall of runes, I couldn't find any body with the puzzle hint on it anywhere... so I just figured it out by trial and error. I thought solving the runes would open a way to the "upper level" one note mentioned. But, of course, I went through the door and level ended so I missed a gem that must have been up there. Fuckers.
Click to expand...

Yep, there is indeed a gem up there.

gamelova said:
I am at the fire cemetery at Chapter 10 where there are a bunch if skeletons attacking me and there are two bongs tht need to be punched. I punch both of them but nothing is happening. I have been stuck here for 20 minutes.
Click to expand...

You have to punch one then run across and punch the other one before the green bar for one side disappears. It's actually pretty easy and i did it on my 3rd try. Try running. :p
 
Sorc3r3r

Sorc3r3r

Member
Early impression.

Playing these first chaps has made me appreciate more the seamless flow of GoW.
The action is too fragmented to my taste right now.

Liking a lot the combat instead it lacks the mad viscerality of GoW, but i find it more varied, without being baroque, more technical without being frustrating, a very good mix, very fun.

The graphic is good too, in these early chaps. i've already seen some great vistas.
Only problem in my opinion is that the overall IQ is a bit too noisy(ps3 version).
 
T

TheKaeptain

Banned
Calling it quits for the night. I want to stay up just too sleepy. Tomorrow, hopefully, I can finish it. None of the puzzles have given me any problems though. All of them have hints that are easy to figure out. So far this is becoming my GOTY.


OMG THE CLOCK TOWER WAS FUCKING COOL.
 
B

British Monsoon

Member
I suck so bad at the combat in this game - I'm on a level where I had to fight 3 huge werewolves at the same time with limited health, and they just kept ruining me every damn time. I can't seem to counter with any sort of regularity and fighting 3 of the bastards at the same time means that while I'm trying to go after one, the others won't give me a moment to attack - the game has 'helpfully' autosaved just before this battle, I've got a slither of health and no light magic, so I have to at least kill one of them before I can regain any health. What I wouldn't give for a fucking health potion or some way of regaining health, beyond the sparsely placed health fonts, without having to kill enemies first! It's an awful, awful system that constantly leaves me wounded, scrabbling for souls so I can refill my light magic bar, waiting for the next set of enemies so I can use light magic and regain some health, hoping they won't kill me before I get the chance. I don't know what it is about 3rd person action adventure combat - I just can't get the hang of it, to the point where I constantly find my self struggling through whole games. It's never easy. In-fact, the only time that, for me, combat has properly clicked in a 3rd person action adventure is during the Ninja Gaiden series. Everything else seems imprecise and detached by comparison.
 
D

Die Squirrel Die

Member
This is probably really obvious and easy but where is the life gem in 1-4
Pan's Temple
? I've tried a FAQ but the writer's instructions are really unclear.
 
M

Maffis

Member
Bootaaay said:
I suck so bad at the combat in this game - I'm on a level where I had to fight 3 huge werewolves at the same time with limited health, and they just kept ruining me every damn time. I can't seem to counter with any sort of regularity and fighting 3 of the bastards at the same time means that while I'm trying to go after one, the others won't give me a moment to attack - the game has 'helpfully' autosaved just before this battle, I've got a slither of health and no light magic, so I have to at least kill one of them before I can regain any health. What I wouldn't give for a fucking health potion or some way of regaining health, beyond the sparsely placed health fonts, without having to kill enemies first! It's an awful, awful system that constantly leaves me wounded, scrabbling for souls so I can refill my light magic bar, waiting for the next set of enemies so I can use light magic and regain some health, hoping they won't kill me before I get the chance. I don't know what it is about 3rd person action adventure combat - I just can't get the hang of it, to the point where I constantly find my self struggling through whole games. It's never easy. In-fact, the only time that, for me, combat has properly clicked in a 3rd person action adventure is during the Ninja Gaiden series. Everything else seems imprecise and detached by comparison.
Click to expand...

You can always lower the difficulty if you must. If you die you will respawn close with at least half the HP. Yes, this game is actually hard. You got alot of combos and button-mashing techniques, but if you can't master dodging, blocking and countering, you will die.
 
L

LiK

Member
Yup, no mashing and hoping to win. You actually need to dodge and block to win. Love it. The last couple of bosses gave me a great challenge on Warrior. Hoping to play on the higher difficulties in the future for fun.
 
Erdrick

Erdrick

Member
Die Squirrel Die said:
This is probably really obvious and easy but where is the life gem in 1-4
Pan's Temple
? I've tried a FAQ but the writer's instructions are really unclear.
Click to expand...

When you get to the area
in the large clearing where the first soldier's corpse is who mentions said gem in his note, instead of going on through the obvious path in the cave, from where the corpse is, keep going right. There is a hidden path and once you hit it, you'll know, because the camera angle will change showing you a new area that's out of the way.

I don't know if that's any worse than the other instructions you have read lol, but that's how I found it.
 
D

Die Squirrel Die

Member
Erdrick said:
When you get to the area
in the large clearing where the first soldier's corpse is who mentions said gem in his note, instead of going on through the obvious path in the cave, from where the corpse is, keep going right. There is a hidden path and once you hit it, you'll know, because the camera angle will change showing you a new area that's out of the way.

I don't know if that's any worse than the other instructions you have read lol, but that's how I found it.
Click to expand...

That's much clearer thanks, found it. I'd been just on the verge of hitting the line where the camera angle changes without ever going over it.
 
RoadHazard

RoadHazard

Gold Member
So, GAF, should I be getting this or Enslaved? I love both the GoW and Uncharted series, so I guess I would be pleased with either. I did like the Castlevania demo more though. The combat in Enslaved didn't feel very good, and neither did the totally automatic/scripted traversal mechanics. Plus, the screen tearing wasn't very nice.

(PS3 version either way, if that makes any difference.)
 
M

MurkyZebra2417

Member
I don't have Enslaved, but Castlevania is very awesome and long. I don't know how long Enslaved is, but Castlevania is easily 15-20 hours on your first playthrough and gives you enough to play the levels again.
 
RoadHazard

RoadHazard

Gold Member
Tryckser said:
I don't have Enslaved, but Castlevania is very awesome and long. I don't know how long Enslaved is, but Castlevania is easily 15-20 hours on your first playthrough and gives you enough to play the levels again.
Click to expand...

Sounds good. And that along with the fact that I can get Castlevania for a bit less sure makes it feel like it's the better value of the two.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Coming to Game Pass: Age of Mythology: Retold, Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, and More
Platform
24
1K
PontiusFeeb replied
  • Poll
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree | Review Thread
Analysis Review 4 5 6 7 8
354
34K
GametimeUK replied
Coming to Game Pass: Manor Lords, Another Crab’s Treasure, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, and More
46
3K
bender replied
  • x2
Lords of the Fallen |OT| Not that one. The other one.
|OT| 6 7 8 9 10
472
27K
Shake Your Rump replied
Outcast: A New Beginning | Review Thread + |OT|
|OT| Analysis Review 2
81
7K
SF Kosmo replied
Top Bottom